Pro's and con's of working at home

According to a recent survey, 76% of people living in this country would prefer to work from home, or at least three working days a week. This has already become a reality for around 2 million people in Germany, especially those working for big companies like BMW or Siemens. I don't work for any of these companies, but ever since I moved out here I have made a conscious choice to work from home as a freelancer. Does this mean I get to lounge around in my fleece pants all day? On the contrary! I need to be highly disciplined and organized, stick to a fixed work schedule and meet deadlines, especially since I don't have a boss breathing down my neck! Besides, clients are only one telephone call away and people tend to get up early over here. It's not unusual for a potential client to call at 7:30 a.m. Luckily, I'm an early riser and I do get most of the work done in the mornings. The advantage is I have the choice of focusing on my work wearing my fleece pants :) Another advantage is that no time is wasted with the usual gossip that makes the rounds in an office each morning. I used to work in an office with several other women. The only male we ever saw was the FedEx man and the janitor. The atmosphere was bitchy - and that's putting it mildly! I'm glad I'm not subjected to that anymore... So, what are the disadvantages? Obviously, it's the feeling of being cut off from the rest of the workforce. That's why I skype with others in my field. There's also the forgetting to take regular breaks. And weekends are weekends, although every freelancer I know will put in some extra work on Saturdays or Sundays, myself included. Here are a few things that are essential, if you want to work from home successfully: 1. a home office, separated by a door you can close and lock would be ideal 2. tools - telephone, computer with internet access*, a printer that also faxes and scans would be useful, external harddisk to store important data * my hubby surprised me with a beautiful flatscreen monitor today. I am so happy about it. There is so much room on my desk now. Thank you hubby! You're the best. 3. webcam is optional 4. a big sign above your desk with the words TAKE A BREAK ! Hope you all have an enjoyable weekend!